Ranked play and map picks are coming to PUBG

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is about to get a whole lot more competitive, thanks to a new ranking system that’s currently on the test servers. The eight ranks, which are based on points, are part of update 22 that went live on test servers earlier today.

You’ll need to play ten matches to get your first rank before working hard to grind your way to the top. Don’t worry if you’re a bronze player though, there’s plenty of time to get some practice in for the grandmaster rank before the update hits live servers in early October.

Map picks are also back in PUBG, so if you’re desperate to escape the barren hills of Miramar or the bridge trolls on Erangel, you’re in luck. The much-requested feature is back with the latest update, along with a quick join feature that’ll put you on the busiest plane across all three maps.

And if that isn’t enough to keep you happy on your quest for a chicken dinner, PlayerUnknown and his team have been busy with a whole host of UI updates and bug fixes to make your experience just that little bit better. Wheel menus, similar to the emote wheel, have been added for throwables and healing items, so you can stop throwing flashes instead of grenades during tense firefights now.

Earlier this year PUBG Corp unveiled a five-year esports roadmap, and updates like this – which improve the competitive element of the game – reinforce that promise. It’ll be interesting to see how high the skill ceiling of the game really is though, and how people learn to adapt to it once the ranking system has been bedded in.